"This is the violet hour, the hour of hush and wonder, when the affectations glow and valor is reborn, when the shadows deepen along the edge of the forest and we believe that, if we watch carefully, at any moment we may see the unicorn."


Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Animal Wednesday - "Cruz'n in Capitola"



A curious Harbour Seal comes close to shore in Capitola. (A quiet, small, lovely area about 90 miles South of San Francisco.)  He stayed for several minutes, clearly captivated with all the sights and sounds of people!  Several kids saw him and jumped in to swim out and say "hi"....but he decided it was all too much and left for deeper waters...



This is the West end of Capitola....I love the brightly-coloured houses....they remind me of the Venetian Lido.

More of the Coloured Houses...the water is not part of the Pacific, but a small inlet.  It is a "favourite" bathing place for Gulls!

Just a bit North of Capitola, is Santa Cruz....a larger town, with a Boardwalk, a University and.....Sea Lions!  Here, a cluster of them loll about on the sun - much to the delight of passers by.

This fellow is HUGE!  Definitely the "Patriarch" of the Group....  he never moved, except to flop over and "sun" his backside...  and he preferred the opposite end of the mooring - away from the females and kids!


This shot didn't come out too well....(perhaps it's for the best)...right as my friend and I were leaving the pier, a Gull flew in - with a fish.  Thank goodness it was dead....because Mr. Gull began to disembowel it right before the crowd!  (I snapped this right after the Gull deposited the fish on the mooring...he waited for a bit before he began to "dine"!  The Sea Lions didn't even raise their heads....  ah, Mother Nature!

HAW everyone!  I hope your Wednesday is a good one...and for those of you in the East and South, not too sweltering. Here, it is drizzling heavy misty and 50 degrees! I haven't seen the Sun since I returned from Capitola last week!

Love,

♥ A Cold Robin ♥

p.s. *My* Mockingbird still continues to stay and sing - despite the gloomy weather!

Posted by Robin at 7:23 AM
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11 comments:

  1. TeriJuly 13, 2011 at 7:29 AM

    What a wonderful and fun post Robin!
    Love those sea lions and the colorful houses are screaming for someone to paint them. Wish I was there.

    HAW

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  2. SnowbrushJuly 13, 2011 at 9:14 AM

    The temp is about the same here in the Willamette Valley, and the drizzle looks like it might develop too. I enjoyed the photos.

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  3. studio loloJuly 13, 2011 at 10:51 AM

    You know I was smiling all through these!
    I really can't believe the number of foggy days you SF'ers have had :(

    Sending you hugs and sunshine!

    xo
    BS♥

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  4. Doris SturmJuly 13, 2011 at 11:21 AM

    I enjoyed that post, Robin, it reminded me of my life in California - I enjoyed watching the sea lions on the various coasts. I really enjoyed every part of California and often traveled up north to the High Sierras and Yosemite. One of my favorite spots was Laguna Beach and of course, Big Bear mountain. I trust that I'll be back in the mountains sooner or later. Thanks for stopping by. I know what you mean, sometimes it just seems quicker to write in English because that's what we're used to.

    Alles Gute und viel Spass wuenscht Dir
    Doris und Gizzy - Tschuess ;-)

    ReplyDelete
  5. Cris, Artist in OregonJuly 13, 2011 at 6:19 PM

    I grew up in CA and never heard of that place. What a lovely area. Wow learn something new every day. Thanks for sharing.

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  6. sukipoetJuly 14, 2011 at 4:44 AM

    love the sea lion basking. maybe i was a sea lion in another life. looks like a sweet little place to visit.

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  7. MimJuly 15, 2011 at 2:36 AM

    I've heard of that town, but never visited it. I love the picture of the brightly colored houses - I'd be so tempted to look inside.

    Those Sea Lions are so HUGE! are they all sea lions, or seals...or is that the same thing?

    anyway - Happy Animal Wednesday...on Friday!

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  8. yoboroboJuly 16, 2011 at 6:03 AM

    I love those painted houses, Robin! What a lovely little place to visit. I wish you guys would get some sunshine. We are having weirdly lovely weather (haha) but it is supposed to heat up soon. Sigh. ;) I have missed visiting you! I hope everything is fabulous with you, my Halloween sista! xox Pam

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  9. Lori annJuly 16, 2011 at 4:39 PM

    Wonderful post Robin! i love that first photo, just lovely.

    Everything looks so different in the sun, i'm so happy it did for you. And now i hope it comes to S.F.!!

    xox lori

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  10. secret agent womanJuly 17, 2011 at 1:13 PM

    Those seals are fantastic. So cute and such a weird mix of grace and awkwardness.

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  11. kjJuly 21, 2011 at 3:25 PM

    i'm looking for my comment here and poof! so now i can add that i like what cs said about grace and awkwardness. isn't that the perfect description of seals?

    i love the architecture of this town, robin. it reminds me of parts of italy. so vibrantly colorful. i'm glad you were able to recharge there. i'm starting to wonder how you stand your weather: so much grey and cold so much of the time.

    xoxo
    kj

    ReplyDelete

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